The present invention relates to the manufacture of light guide fibers for light wave communications systems, and more specifically to a method and apparatus for the manufacture of preforms to be drawn into the fiber.
The entire telephone communications system in this country is undergoing a major renovation in which copper wire is being replaced by light guide fibers. The advantages of light guide fibers over copper wire are numerous - higher capacity (information can be transmitted at a much higher speed), capability of handling higher frequencies, smaller size and facility for signal amplification by repeaters utilizing lasers. If one considers the millions of miles of copper wire to be replaced by light guide fibers, one quickly realizes the enormity of the need for economical processes and apparatus for producing the fiber.